Risshaku-ji was founded in 860 to oversee the operations of the Tendai sect of Buddhism in the Tohoku area. A famous story relates how Matsuo Basho, the leading Japanese haiku poet of the 17th century, visited the temple and composed a poem on its tranquil beauty in the woods. A monument to the poem stands in the temple compound. The Konpon-chu-do, a hall in the complex, was rebuilt in the 14th century and was designated an Important Cultural Property by the Japanese government. In it, a Buddhist flame transferred from the temple Hiei-zan has been kept lit since the foundation of the temple – more than 1,000 years . The Hiho-kan (treasure hall) enshrines the treasures of Risshaku-ji, the most significant of which is a monument to a Buddhist sutra which was built in 1144 and is designated an Important Cultural Property. Buddhist images and seated statues of high priests are also enshrined here.